Tooth decay and dental disease can be caused by bacterial action resulting from the formation of plaque about the teeth and/or the entrapment of food particles in interstices between the teeth. Removal of plaque and entrapped food particles reduces the incidence of caries, gingivitis, and mouth odors as well as generally improving oral hygiene. Conventional brushing has been found to be inadequate for removing all entrapped food particles and plaque.
To supplement brushing, dental flosses and tapes have been recommended. Many dental flosses are formed of a plurality of long, continuous filaments. Other dental flosses are formed of a gel (referred to herein as "gel flosses"), such as those described in co-pending application U.S. Ser. No. 08/699,891, filed Aug. 15, 1996.
Dental floss is typically packaged by winding many yards of the dental floss onto a small spool, placing the spool in a plastic housing having a hinged cover and a cutting blade, and allowing the free end of the floss to extend upward from the spool to a position in which it can be grasped by a user when the user opens the hinged cover. To dispense a length of floss, the free end of the floss is grasped, a desired length of floss is pulled off of the spool, and the floss is cut by drawing it across the cutting blade.